Upon entering the downtown Bottle Rock we were struck by stark modernity. The room is made of cast concrete: bearing walls, interior walls and both cylindrical and square pillars supporting a twelve foot-high ceiling. Straight ahead was a twenty-stool bar, half of which is dedicated to a show kitchen with pristine half-inch plate glass separating [...]
Archives: Dining
Hello Wine Lovers!
Hello wine lovers it has been a few days since I have written. I was invited to the Los Angeles International Wine Competition. The event was held at the Los Angeles County Fair grounds in one of the exhibition halls. The 50 plus judges were set into 5 and 6 person panels Judging started at [...]
New Kid on the Block: D-Town Burger Bar
The first time I noticed a little Burger Bar had opened on 6th and Spring was a few weeks ago. It was around 2am, and I was still out from a night on the town. How sad, my friends said, pointing to empty countertops, and empty booths. Reminiscent of Boulevard of Broken Dreams, a lone [...]
The Extraordinary Case of Mike Berger
Stan Lerner, editor-in-chief and creator of Downtownster is a revered cohort for whom I am indebted to Mike Berger, the subject of this entry, for making possible our acquaintance. Mr. Lerner has been googled over 1.2 million times; his blogs (articles for Downtownster and his satirical serial Downtown Oliver Brown) have around 2 million hits; [...]
Mistress of the MUST
When I’m not holed up in my loft, battering the keyboard of my Macbook like a diligent young writer, you can usually find me at my local haunt. Sometimes with a glass of wine, sometimes with a fluffernutter sandwich. My neighborhood bar downtown happens to be the Must. Which is a more successful resident of [...]
ROY’S — STARING ROY YAMAGUCHI AS HIMSELF
Over the past few years, since Roy’s opened Downtown at 8th and Figueroa, I’d guess I’ve eaten there around two hundred times. The sheer size of this number could lead one to believe that Roy’s is somehow commonplace—it’s not. I love food, I could have eaten anywhere, Roy’s is simply that good. And I should [...]
Crown Café Best Panini In LA!
“Stan you should try out Crown Café—and blog about it,” said cute little Sarah a wine tasting buddy of mine at Ralphs. “Really, I haven’t heard of it.” “It just opened. Emma, my roommate is the supervisor—you’ll like it.” “Well, what do they serve?” I asked, not always [...]
Church and State
I’ve lived in France twice, once at age 18 when my parents deported me for the summer (long story) to Royan, and the second time when I was in college I (sort of) opted to take a term abroad in Rennes. Fond memories include eating crêpes with nutella and banana on the beach, and my [...]
Blue Velvet
I’ve been to Blue Velvet twice in the past two years, and each time I’ve had a solid dining experience. And to clarify, solid, in my book, is positive. I liked the market driven menu, fun cocktails, and an alleged rooftop veggie and herb garden. I went back to BV the other night with a [...]
Nick and Stef’s Steakhouse
After living in LA for almost three years now (I moved from NYC), it’s quite odd that, in the hundreds of dinners I’ve eaten out, I’ve somehow never eaten at a Patina Group restaurant. I have, however, grabbed many a milkshake at Milk, which is owned by a former Patina chef, however I’ve managed to [...]
